Services

Man arrested after bomb scare at Newport retail park

A BOMB scare in Newport yesterday [THURS] saw a shopping park evacuated, streets closed off and a controlled explosion take place.

Following the scare, a Newport man was arrested on charges relating to bomb hoaxes.

A bomb disposal squad used a white robot to blow up the suspicious package, which was lodged under a fire door at the back of Wickes hardware store at the Harlequin roundabout, near Shaftesbury Park.

Shortly after 11.30am, dozens of Gwent Police vans, ambulances and two fire engines attended and cordoned off the end of Barrack Hill, Evans Street and the top of Malpas Road, blocking all traffic to the roundabout.

An underpass leading from McDonald's restaurant on Lyne Road, to Wickes and Aldi supermarket on the other side, was closed as well as pedestrian walkway passing close to the stores.

Both Wickes and Aldi staff were evacuated as a precaution and some nearby residents were also advised to leave their homes, Gwent Police said.

At around 12.30pm, one of the fire engines put up its ladder in the centre of the roundabout and a bomb disposal van, manned by people in military gear as well as police officers, unloaded a white robot.

Around 20 minutes later there was a short, loud bang from the back of the store, which shares the same site as Aldi supermarket, as the parcel was blown up against a fire door.

Forensics teams then moved in to investigate and emergency service personnel began to leave the scene. A Gwent Police spokeswoman said the package was found not to be an explosive device.

A 27-year-old Newport man has been arrested under section 51 of the Criminal Law Act, which is applicable to bomb hoaxes, and was in custody as the Argus went to press last night.

A spokesman for Wickes said: "The safety of our employees and our customers has been our main priority, and we fully supported the police in their work to ascertain the nature of the package discovered at our store in Newport.

"Once we received clearance from the police we re-opened the store at 4.30pm today."

Bus services along Malpas Road were disrupted for three hours and shoppers were unable to return to their cars until the controlled explosion had been carried out.

Comments

the blast caused millions of pounds worth damage which improved the area.

the blast caused millions of pounds worth damage which improved the area.corpamassive

the blast caused millions of pounds worth damage which improved the area.

Score: 0

Realist UK
7:22pm Thu 4 Apr 13

Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.

Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.Realist UK

Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.

Score: 0

smokintheweed
11:04pm Thu 4 Apr 13

Realist UK wrote…

Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.

And had it been a real bomb it could have killed people. Get real.

[quote][p][bold]Realist UK[/bold] wrote:
Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.[/p][/quote]And had it been a real bomb it could have killed people. Get real.smokintheweed

Realist UK wrote…

Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.

And had it been a real bomb it could have killed people. Get real.

Score: 0

smokintheweed
11:19pm Thu 4 Apr 13

Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?

Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?smokintheweed

Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?

Score: 0

Jonos44
1:26pm Fri 5 Apr 13

Realist UK wrote…

Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.

And another excuse for the what on earth were the emergency services doing not taking it seriously had people been killed by a genuine device. Perhaps next time they can call you and you can pick it up, the emergency services can't win.

[quote][p][bold]Realist UK[/bold] wrote:
Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.[/p][/quote]And another excuse for the what on earth were the emergency services doing not taking it seriously had people been killed by a genuine device. Perhaps next time they can call you and you can pick it up, the emergency services can't win.Jonos44

Realist UK wrote…

Another excuse for the "You can't be too careful" brigade to don their hi-viz gear and cause disruption.

And another excuse for the what on earth were the emergency services doing not taking it seriously had people been killed by a genuine device. Perhaps next time they can call you and you can pick it up, the emergency services can't win.

Score: 0

Realist UK
4:22pm Fri 5 Apr 13

smokintheweed wrote…

Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?

Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb which is a different scenario to what was originally reported whereby a woman reported a "suspicious package".

[quote][p][bold]smokintheweed[/bold] wrote:
Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?[/p][/quote]Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb which is a different scenario to what was originally reported whereby a woman reported a "suspicious package".Realist UK

smokintheweed wrote…

Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?

Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb which is a different scenario to what was originally reported whereby a woman reported a "suspicious package".

Score: 0

scraptheWAG
6:42pm Fri 5 Apr 13

arrested trying to blow up newport the guy should have been on the new years honours list. what we need is a atom bomb and blow the whole squalid filthy dirty dump to pieces.

arrested trying to blow up newport the guy should have been on the new years honours list. what we need is a atom bomb and blow the whole squalid filthy dirty dump to pieces.scraptheWAG

arrested trying to blow up newport the guy should have been on the new years honours list. what we need is a atom bomb and blow the whole squalid filthy dirty dump to pieces.

Score: 0

Robindabank
7:20pm Fri 5 Apr 13

Maniac.....I was fitting a kitchen, caused hours of delay.....why Wickes? Pathetic....even the cranks in Newport are second rate.

Maniac.....I was fitting a kitchen, caused hours of delay.....why Wickes? Pathetic....even the cranks in Newport are second rate.Robindabank

Maniac.....I was fitting a kitchen, caused hours of delay.....why Wickes? Pathetic....even the cranks in Newport are second rate.

Score: 0

smokintheweed
7:23pm Fri 5 Apr 13

Realist UK wrote…

smokintheweed wrote…

Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?

Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb which is a different scenario to what was originally reported whereby a woman reported a "suspicious package".

"Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb"?

There was no mention of anybody making a threat via phone to any authority in this story. Where did you obtain your information?

The IRA used to issue bomb threats and some of them were often proved to be real and with fatal consequences.

I would suggest that you change your username to Fantasist UK or possibly Misguided UK.

[quote][p][bold]Realist UK[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]smokintheweed[/bold] wrote:
Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?[/p][/quote]Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb which is a different scenario to what was originally reported whereby a woman reported a "suspicious package".[/p][/quote]"Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb"?
There was no mention of anybody making a threat via phone to any authority in this story. Where did you obtain your information?
The IRA used to issue bomb threats and some of them were often proved to be real and with fatal consequences.
I would suggest that you change your username to Fantasist UK or possibly Misguided UK.smokintheweed

Realist UK wrote…

smokintheweed wrote…

Correct me if I am wrong "Realist" but most of us are not bomb disposal experts. How are the general public supposed to know the difference?

Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb which is a different scenario to what was originally reported whereby a woman reported a "suspicious package".

"Obviously, the culprit made a phone call suggesting it was a bomb"?

There was no mention of anybody making a threat via phone to any authority in this story. Where did you obtain your information?

The IRA used to issue bomb threats and some of them were often proved to be real and with fatal consequences.

I would suggest that you change your username to Fantasist UK or possibly Misguided UK.

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